Easy Weights…tick tock tick tock…

Workout notes
Light weight workout (reduced significantly):
rotator cuff, Achilles, hip hikes, back: full set (PT)
light squats: one set of 5 with 45 (assisted stretching really)

Meat:
pull ups: 3 sets of 10; tried to minimize unnecessary body movement.
incline press: 5 x 135, 2 x 150, 1 x 165, failed at 175, 1 x 170 (easy!), 8 x 145.
military dumbbell: 2 sets of 12 x 50 lb.
dumbbell rows: 2 sets of 10 x 65 each arm
pull downs: 2 sets of 10 x 160
curls (machine), 2 sets of 10 x 70

It is real; this weekend is going to be hard. Mentally: I am a basket case (more so than normal).
A good aside: I THINK that I solved a math problem that has vexed me for 20 years; I’ll spend the next week or so verifying that I have a solution. I’ve been fooled before.

No, I did NOT get this sort of assistance:

(via: Girls in Yoga Pants)

Some friends thought that I’d like this photo..for some reason.

IRS “Scandal”: facts and opinion

Workout notes Leisurely weight workout:
Supplementary: 5 sets of hip hikes and Achilles exercises, 3 sets of super light squats (45, 45, 65)
Abs: 3 sets of 10 of: vertical crunch, sit back, twist, crunch.
Side plank, stretches.

Meat:
pull ups: 5 sets of 10
bench: 10 x 135, 4 x 185
dumbbell bench: 2 sets of 10 x 65
dumbbell row: 3 sets of 10 x 65 (each arm)
dumbbell military: 3 sets of 12 x 50
incline: 2 sets of 7 x 145
pull down: 3 sets of 10 x 160
curl: EZ curl bar, strict: 3 sets of 10 x 60 (10, 5, 2.5 on each side)

IRS Scandal
The facts are these:
1. The White House, by law, cannot tell them to investigate this group or that person:

Even as Obama vowed that his administration “will make sure that we find out exactly what happened on this,” however, the IRS offered no new information on how it selected which groups to single out for scrutiny.

The White House is legally barred from contacting the IRS about a tax matter, under a prohibition adopted after the Watergate scandal. And although it can contact the Treasury Department about tax issues, neither Treasury nor the IRS can disclose specific taxpayer information. The IRS can release information about a petition for tax-
exempt status only after it has been approved.

Obama is not in a position to remove Lerner, a career official who can be terminated for cause only under normal civil service proceedings. The IRS has two political appointees: the commissioner, who serves a five-year term, and the chief counsel.

2. The Commissioner at the time of this behavior, was appointed by President Bush:

Then-Commissioner Douglas Shulman, a George W. Bush appointee who stepped down in November, received a briefing from the TIGTA about what was happening in the Cincinnati office in May 2012, the aides said. His deputy and the agency’s current acting commissioner, Steven T. Miller, also learned about the matter that month, the aides said.

The officials did not share details with Republican lawmakers who had been demanding to know whether the IRS was targeting conservative groups, Republicans said.

3. The IRS people did look for certain key words normally associated with conservative groups:

It came as a surprise when the Internal Revenue Service apologized, seemingly out of the blue, to a number of Tea Party groups for unfairly scrutinizing their tax exempt status on Friday. Now we know why the apology came when it did.

The Associated Press’ Stephen Ohlemacher reports a federal watchdog report coming out this week will show senior IRS officials knew about the unfair scrutiny as far back as 2011. The report from the Treasury Department’s inspector general shows Lois Lerner, the head of the IRS division that oversees tax-exempt groups, was informed that groups with “Tea Party,” ”Patriot” or “9/12 Project” in their names were being targeted for extra questioning at a meeting on June 29, 2011. During Lerner’s apology on Friday, she blamed the targeting on lower-level tax agents. The report seems to show Lerner was telling the truth on Friday. The report shows she told the agents to change the criteria for flagging groups “immediately.”

4. The major political type groups were NOT targeted:

ut while a few of the big groups have faced delays in having their tax exemptions recognized by the I.R.S., none appear to have received the intense scrutiny given the Tea Party groups, which were asked dozens of questions about spending on political advertising and other election activities. Of 15 such groups represented by Jay Sekulow, a lawyer with the American Center for Law and Justice, none spent a dollar on broadcast advertising from 2009 through 2012, according to the Campaign Media Analysis Group.

I.R.S. officials said they had also submitted as many as 200 other groups’ applications to closer examination, but have declined to characterize those groups’ political affiliation.

Chris Ashby, a lawyer who advises conservative groups, said the I.R.S. might have focused on smaller groups because they seemed less likely to contest the reviews. “The big groups are generally well-advised, lawyered up. Their tax forms are artfully drawn,” Mr. Ashby said. Smaller groups, he suggested, made a better target for the I.R.S.

“Many of them don’t have counsel,” he said. “They probably aren’t well advised.”

So, the IRS did do wrong, but there is zero evidence that this had anything to do with President Obama.

Opinion
Ok, so you still think that the IRS scandal was driven by politics; that somehow, we wanted to discourage the mostly smaller tea party groups…because of…well, exactly why? Frankly, I WANT groups like this to be front and center and for the Republicans to be associated with them:

Progress with the Weights

After the workout: I weighed 186 pounds.
Workout: (lazy pace)
rotator cuff, hip hikes, Achilles, side plank, down dog, back stuff
Also: at the end, 3 sets of 10 of: crunch, twist, sit back, vertical crunch

Pull ups: 2 sets of 15, 2 sets of 10
Bench press: 10 x 135, 1 x 185, 1 x 195, 1 x 200 (best since April, 2010 prior to my shoulder injury)
Incline press: 8 x 145, 8 x 140
Seated Dumbbell Military: 3 sets of 12 x 50
Dumbbell Row: 3 sets of 10 x 65 (each arm)
Pull downs: 3 sets of 10 x 165
Curls: 3 sets of 10 x 65 (EZ curl bar)

I was feeling pretty chipper about my bench press until some young man made 315 look like paper mache.

It is nice to be able to do 15 pull ups and bench press 200 again though; and even better: the shoulder feels fine.

Training Summary: what works, what doesn’t.

Ok, I am comparing 2012 (spring) to 2013 (spring)

What I did in 2012:
A typical training week consisted of:
3 1800 yard swims
18-19 miles of running: typically 5, 5, 8 with one tempo session and sometimes a race
20-22 miles of walking: typically 14-18 plus a medium walk (4-6)
2 relatively brief weight sessions.

What this got me:
2:34 half marathon (walking)
5K runs: 25:08, 25:14, 25:41 (BU course; long) 24:34, 25:13 (RFTC)
(25:10 average)
long (fall): 1:23:18 15K (easy course)
I also had a Wild Life Prairie Park 37:07 (4 miles)

Weights: military: 45 lb. dumbbell, incline: 8, 9 x 135, bench: 3, 4 x 175.
Pull ups: 10, 13 max.

Body Weight: about 190.

2013 spring:
no swimming
running: 35-36 miles per week (8-10, 6, 5-6, 12-16)
walking: 3-6 miles per week, one walk, sometimes a bit longer
weights: 3 lengthy, intense sessions.

What this got me:
5K
25:49 (27:04 for 3.25), 25:14, 25:29, 26:12 (long, BU course), 25:48 (RTFC)
25:42 average (two same courses: + 31 for BU, + 35 for RFTC) 32 seconds slower on average. (2 percent slower)
2:01:17 half marathon (running)
1:22:46 15K split (tougher course than 2012 (fall), 32 seconds faster “en route”)
1:29:00 10 mile split (fastest in about a decade)

Weights: 185 x 4 bench, up to 15 pull ups, 145 x 10 (once) on the incline; 140 x 10 is typical.
Body Weight: 186.

Upshot: I am lighter and stronger this year than I was last year. I am slower for the 5K. I am faster for the longer distances. Walking is untested.
Piriformis: still sore at times, but a bit improved; also the back remains a slight chronic problem.

Goals: perhaps reduce the long run to 12 miles or so (once on non-race weeks); add the tempo run back (and reduce the 10 to perhaps 6-7-8), add one walk and do a longish walk on race weekends. Try to add 2 swims a week; those are good for ankles and the whole body.

Other: Monica took some photos from the Peoria Heights Half:

Fun Fun Fun and Weights…

Workout notes
Very leisurely weight workout:
Supplemental stuff: rotator cuff, hip hikes, Achilles, side plank, light squats (5 x 50, 5 x 75)
The squats were more for stretching than for strength. The goal is to be able to build up to doing real weights.

Meat:
pull ups: 15, 10, 10, 10, 10
bench: 10 x 135, 4 x 185, 7 x 170
dumbbell military: 3 sets of 12 x 50 (seated, supported)
dumbbell rows: 3 sets of 10 x 65 (each arm)
dumbbell bench: 2 sets of 10 x 65
ab sets: 3 sets of 10 of crunch, twist, sit back, vertical crunch (curl that torso!)
incline press: 10 x 140, 8 x 140
pull downs: 3 sets of 10 x 160
pulley curls: 3 sets of 10 x 57.5

No, I didn’t do this exercise nor did I see her:

Stuff I am signed up to do tomorrow’s Race For the Cure. I’ll have to be careful to not line up too far back as this year, the men and women start together (that is unfortunate). I will of miss running through the wave of 12-13 minute milers at about mile 2 and the 11 minute milers toward the end, as I am doing here in the 2009 race. My time was a mid 24.

Fun I have a fast racewalking friend; her WALKING marathon PR (4:19) is sure to be faster than the one I am scheduled to run in a week. She posted some video of her training. She told me that I’d like it. She made a longer video for her coach to critique. I took the liberty of taking a small portion of it.

Creationism in some class rooms: how much does it really matter?

workout notes
Weights only in the morning; some miles (2-4? walking) in the afternoon with the group (not done yet).

Weights: (almost empty gym; it is final exam week)
supplementary: rotator cuff, Achilles, Hip Hikes, Side Plank, some yoga
Main: pull ups: 5 sets of 10
bench: 10 x 135, 4 x 185, 7 x 170 (ran out of motivation)
incline: 10 x 140, 6 x 150
abs: 3 sets of 10 each; crunch, twists, sit back, v. crunch (curling the torso makes a huge difference!)
dumbbell bench: 2 sets of 10 x 65 dumbbells
dumbbell military: 3 sets of 12 x 50
dumbbell row: 3 sets of 10 x 65 (I always sweat heavily during this one)
Hammer row: 2 sets of 10 x 210
pull downs: 3 sets of 10 x 160
curls: 3 sets of 10 x 65 (EZ curl bar; 2 10 pound plates on each side)
Oh yes, I’ve started doing light squats:
5 x 45, 5 x 65, 5 x 75 (no, I am not joking; those are my actual weights, but I am training myself to go deep).

Reason: I want to start squats this summer; my legs are too weak for me to run faster.

Posts
How much harm does creationism cause? Sure, it is bogus but it appears to me that those who don’t believe creationism believe all sorts of other woo-woo; I am beginning to think that most people just aren’t going to understand science anyway.

I read something to that effect in Kenneth Miller’s book Only a Theory. Another research professor said that it might not be worth it to expend too much energy in fighting creationism in the deep south as that is not where we get most of our scientists.

What started me thinking about this: one was this post by Jerry Coyne; he had given some lectures in North Carolina and some had reacted negatively. (Yes, there is a strong research triangle there; I definitely would defend science teaching in that area.)

Then there is this video from a Dayton, Tennessee biology class room: (yes, THAT Dayton, Tennessee; the place of the Scope “Monkey” Trial):

Sure I wouldn’t want MY kid in that classroom with that “biology teacher” (who in the heck graduated him? Bryan College? Liberty? Bob Jones?) but these aren’t my kids.

Seeing stuff like this makes me think that we really made a mistake fighting the Civil War; had we just let the Southern States go we would be a much stronger country, and they’d be happier. We could have our liberal democracy and they could have their theocracy that they crave.

NOTE: yes, I know that there are two big issues. There is the legal issue: the “no establishment” clause forbids the government promoting religion in the class room; this is why creationism is illegal.

The other issue is the issue of “good science teaching”: creationism/intelligent design is regarded as a long-ago-debunked crackpot idea, on a par with homeopathy and astrology. If you don’t believe me, surf to the websites of the best science museums in the nation, or to any biology department in any non-sectarian university. Start with the big research universities in your state; see for yourself what is being researched and taught.

Sweat, Sweat…

I sweated like a pig during today’s weight workout. I started off tired and I took the weight session at a leisurely pace.
Supplementary stuff: rotator cuff, Achilles, hip hikes, squats (3 sets of 5; last set was with…gasp,…65 pounds! )

pull ups: 5 sets of 10
bench: 10 x 135, 1 x 185 (off), 3 x 185, 7 x 170
incline: 10 x 140, 7 x 140
military (dumbbell): 3 sets of 12 x 50
rows: 3 sets of 10 x 210 (Hammer)
curls: 1 set of 10 x 57.5, 2 sets of 10 x 65 (ez curl)
pull downs: 3 sets of 10 x 160
abs: 3 sets of: crunch, v. crunch, twists, sit backs.

It doesn’t seem like that much but it took some time.

I just sweated all over the place; I started off a bit tired and fatigued though.

Weirdness about my weight training

I know that I’ve slowed down in running, even when one accounts for age. To make the comparison fair (i. e., NOT to compare myself when I was averaging many more running miles a week than I do now:

My 5K run time as a 44 year old was 22:09, which is equivalent to a 23:59 for a 53 year old, and a 20:31 for a 20-29 year old.
My recent best: 24:51 (last October) So, I am about 1 minute slower, even if one takes age grading into account.

But as far as weights, here are the age equivalent charts:

(note: this is based on my doing 4 x 185 this morning at a body weight of 186 by the doctor’s scale).

Bottom line: in terms of age grading, I am stronger (FOR MY AGE) now than I was in the early 1980′s. True, I am weaker now …in absolute terms.

One could argue that I am better in the weight room (less bad? than I am on the roads.

Note: the chart is from here. The calculator is from here.

“Worthless and Weak!”

(about 2:20 into it…this is from Animal House).

Workout notes
Weights only.
Pull ups (5 sets of 10); rests were hip hikes and Achilles exercises.
bench: 10 x 135, 4 x 185 (improvement) 7 x 170
rest was rotator cuff.
incline: 10 x 140, 8 x 140
rest: 3 sets each of crunch, twist, sit back, vertical crunch.
Note: I realized that I was NOT curling my torso on the vertical crunch; when I did it became much more challenging!
rows: 3-4 sets of 10 x 65 (dumbbells, each arm; I lost count)
military press: 3 sets of 12 x 50 seated (dumbbell, each arm)
dumbbell bench press: 7 x 70 dumbbells, 10 x 65 dumbbells. The 70′s were NOT pretty.
pull downs: 3 sets of 10 x 160
curls: dumbbell: 10 x 30, pulley: 10 x 57.5, machine: 10 x 70.
side plank, back, etc.

Note: on one of my sets of incline presses, someone noted that my last rep was better than the two prior to that; it was because I concentrated. My mind is sometimes undisciplined.

Note; body weight was 186 on the doctor’s scale afterward and I got 4 x 185 on the bench. In 1985, I got 11 reps with my bodyweight (230 at the time) and I’d like to match that some day.

Peoria weather More rain; a line of storms have just parked itself right over us. This has been one really wet (and chilly) spring.

This is (almost) me…

Ok, I only use 65 pound dumbbells for this exercise (dumbbell bench press; usually 2-3 sets of 10). But the rest of it…yeah, that’s me.